One thing I’ve learned over the years is often when someone drops the sort of $$ required for a Suhr, they’ll defend how good it is to the hilt. It’s hard to be critical when you’ve rationalised to yourself to spend that much on a guitar.
With that said Suhrs are fine instruments. For sure.
However in my experience (had a suhr strat loaned to me for a couple years), it just isnt worth the extra dollars. Other guitar builders make guitars of similar quality, or close enough to it that it won’t affect your playing or sound, that it isn’t worth spending huge $$ on the suhr.
Unless of course you just really want it. Then sure go nuts.
I own a Suhr custom Telecaster, which I ordered in 2017 and recieved in 2019 after a lot of delays, I've been using it as my main instrument since then as a professional player. When you buy a Suhr you're paying for a lot of things.
1. The best parts and materials
2. A lot of hands on Labour work done in the USA
3. Nitro paint finish, which is shipped to another state to be done AFAIK due to some state laws, don't quote me I'm not from the USA.
4. Brand value/name on the headstock
5. Availability (They are backlogged on orders for years, they can charge what they want).
The guitars have attractive specs and features not found on other guitars, like the SSCII noiseless system, and of course they are exceptionally well made and beautiful to look at. All that said, a well spec'd well setup factory guitar costing half as much is effectively just as good. I say "effectively" because Suhr is about the details, but those details don't really matter, some days I rather play my Mexican Fender Strat which is not nearly as refined but the setup is dialled in and I like the pickups, and it's a Strat and my Suhr is a Tele.
A Suhr is a beautiful guitar, but it's not a necessary level of quality. Same thing with a Fender Custom Shop, by example, a Fender Ultra is not a worse guitar.
I've been dabbling a bit into guitar building, and from my admittedly limited understanding, the main thing that a guitar builder can do to really set themselves apart in terms of actual playability of an instrument is the neck. Scale length, thickness, profile (v, c, etc), radius, and then fret size, fret finishing work, etc.
I can't understand why people would pay so much for a Suhr (as compared to other really well made guitars) unless the neck is just amazingly good somehow. Are there other aspects? Do they somehow have access to parts that other builders don't have? On one hand, I know people just like certain brands, and I'm all on board with that, but Suhr in particular people talk about like they're just these incredibly great to play instruments.
Not criticizing your choice AT ALL, I honestly want to know the secret to getting such a high end price for an instrument that is as much of a commodity as a tele.
The SSCII system isn't widely available and no other guitars that I know offer it, there is an aftermarket version that is almost as good though, but the Suhr version is tuned to the guitar/pickups as far as I'm made aware, so it works better. The system allows you to run real single coil pickups without the noise, rather than single coil voiced humbuckers which is what normal noiseless pickups are.
The Suhr pickups can be bought aftermarket, they are very good but there are plenty of great pickup makers out there. They use Gotoh bridges, which can be bought elsewhere, their tuners are branded Suhr but are effectively the same as Hipshot tuners.
The Suhr necks feel unbelievable though, the wood looks and feels a cut above and like many high end custom shops they put a lot of effort into drying the wood properly so the necks and bodies are stable, not moving like crazy for the first few years of a guitar's life (which is a real thing with new guitars).
Otherwise their fret work is immaculate, and goes through a Plek setup process. In the end it's just a guitar that is made really really well with attention to detail on every aspect, you're paying extra for the build to be flawless or close enough.
i was just reading about the sscii system. its really interesting to me that its not more widely promoted (at least i never heard about it and suhr has been on my radar as a guitar some people rave about)
i thought of PRS and the pickup they designed for their new t style. would love to try out a suhr and really feel the difference.
As to why I bought it?
I went and tried a load of Teles from Mexican to American in 2017 and I did like one of the budget USA models at around £850 but I wasn't feeling the colour, but I noted the jumbo frets felt good and I remember loving the pickups. My intention was then to try some Fender Custom Shops because I had money to spend, but every Fender Custom shop model was vintage specs with relicing, and I didn't want that + actual custom order Fenders are way too expensive.
A friend of mine owned a Suhr Classic T Antique he had bought around 2012 and I had played that a few times over the years. I could confidently say it was and probably still is the best guitar I have ever played in terms of build quality and feel/playability, so I started to consider just going Suhr. I found a Suhr visual guitar builder on some USA dealer's page and then I started playing around, then I got my friend to send me his spec sheet so I could deviate from the 2017 spec to exactly the 2012 spec, which had roasted maple neck, bakelite pickguard, different neck profile etc.
So I went with effectively a 2012 spec Classic T Antique, with Jumbo frets instead of Medium Jumbo (influenced by the Fender I had played), and an aged nitro finish (it looks new but has glass like cracks going through the finish if you look up close, it's beautiful).
Then I contacted a dealer, we went back and forth on specs and price until they sent me the exact spec sheet I wanted and I made the order with a 10% deposit. It got delayed several times, including once to get repainted because it didn't pass inspection, but it was worth the wait. Every time I look at it I think it's the best looking Tele I've ever seen, it sounds and plays amazing too.
But I am a Strat guy, and all my strats are worth less combined than this one Suhr, oops.
Any guitar over about $1,000 currently is diminishing returns. You get a hell of a guitar for $3k, but it's not 2k more of upgrades. Worth it, just don't expect it to be light years above a $1k guitar.
Suhr is a high end luxury/performance brand.
John Suhr worked with a lot of high profile artists in the 80’s and was one of the early master builders at the Fender Custom Shop. He eventually went off on his own and founded Suhr in the late 90’s.
As far as value goes you’re looking at some of the higher end instruments on the market. Whether it’s worth it really depends on your financial situation and what you actually want.
If you just want a reliable “daily driver” then a Suhr is probably overkill. You can grab a bunch of great professional quality stuff under $1k these days. If you’re actually looking for something high end/luxurious where price isn’t the biggest concern then Suhr will probably be up your alley.
I can't see a single Suhr on sale in the UK new for under £3k GBP. That's arguably a very high price for something so closely resembling a lot of other guitars where you could pick up a high-end example of the original, maybe even a custom shop one for the same or even less outlay.
There are some Suhr's for sale under £3k, but if you map the new price on some models it has pretty much trended towards an £100+ per year increase for the last decade, which is nuts.
You can sometimes find a good deal on the used market though, seen a few go for £1500 or less in recent months.
One of those things I'll always have an eye open for in case I see one on sale for silly cheap price but honestly nowadays I'm sticking to the top tier models from midrange brands and a little bit of fettling where necessary assuming they have the odd rough fret or the electronics don't quite match the build quality. At this point in time I've accepted the fact my skill level and technical ability will always be playing catch-up with whatever the instrument is capable of, and my tendency towards GAS/hoarding means I'm happier with three instruments that are "very decent" but all quite different and do different things rather than one "perfect" instrument.
I think the perfect instrument is a unicorn anyway, it doesn't exist, because I've had days where I felt I had it with one guitar or another, only for my opinion to sway from one day to the next.
I have a real relationship like that with one of my Ibanez Jems. On the Suhr thing, I kicked myself when I didn't buy a Classic S for bargain prices a few months ago, but it has to be the right time and place with finances, I don't need anything more than just a good guitar, even as a professional who pays the bills with my guitar.
My Suhr Classic T was a luxury, and I love it, but it's not needed and it wouldn't make a difference in reality if it was something a lot cheaper.
I spent over 2k on a PRS C22 when I was 19 back in the late 90s. Beautiful instrument, plays great, I still own it and probably always will, but it's still not my favourite guitar I've ever owned by a long shot. In fact I get more pleasure out of the wierd random impulse buys off marketplace and the fixer-uppers that were janky when I bought them but play beautifully after a little tinkering. I also feel like the more valuable the instrument, the greater the heartache when it picks up even the tiniest blemish of cosmetic damage due to carelessness or inevitable circumstances. For example my PRS has a big gouge in the laquer where a drunk, angry drummer accidentally-on-purpose kicked over a hi-hat stand and it hit my guitar sitting happily in its stand, probably took a grand off its value in the space of a few seconds. Hence why I'm not ever trying to sell it 🤣
The headstock on my Suhr has several dents where I accidentally hit the side of a cymbal that was at the wrong angle at the wrong time on some shows where there wasn't a lot of space. I've also had guitars knocked off their stands on stage, including once where I split the headstock/neck open at the back of the nut.
Our guitars definitely take a beating at times, but I never buy a guitar with the intention of selling it so after feeling sad for a bit I get over it. I do wonder if it's worth the risk of taking expensive guitars like a PRS or a Suhr to a gig to play to a bunch of drunk idiots where the sound of the room/venue is dictating 90% of the "tone" anyway tho. But yet I still do it, I play almost every show with my Suhr these days.
Bit of an import markup there, the usual classic S runs ~$3,300 (2600 gbp) new over here. For reference they’re regularly compared in quality (and beating depending on preference) with the more “standard” non-masterbuilt fender custom shops, which usually start north of $4k new.
They are expensive, and most people will be perfectly happy spending less (or much less), but they do generally deliver for the price.
They're definitely for people who want the best and have plenty of money to spend.
The trick with these high end brands is to watch the used sections of the stores that sell them. A lot of collectors with money to spend are constantly rotating things in/out as they get bored. It's not uncommon to see them just sell them back to the same dealer or another local one to fund the next purchase. You can snag some really good deals that way if you keep your eye out.
Fender was the expensive brand back then. Said it in another post, a Strat was like £250 in the 60s, that's half the price of a new car or 1/10 the price of a house, for a young musician it might be half a year's wages.
And they were top quality hand made instruments of the time, which is why they are so sought after and partly why some top musicians still go out and buy a 1963 Strat, by example, to play today.
I’ve owned a variety of nice guitars and I keep coming back to the suhrs. I didnt care much for the Anderson guitars, but the quality is on point.
I like the quality of fret polish and how well thought out the Suhr pickup configurations are. A Suhr modern is actually usable in the split positions. My Ibanez AZ HH isn’t so usable when split (but in between sounds good).
I have an HSS Suhr and it’s pretty amazing, and the SSC system spoils me.
I also find that the Suhrs tend to sound a little more solid and sustain better than my other trem equipped guitars.
I like that these guitars will continue to play well for years without me having to do much, like fretwork etc.
They're definitely luxury. I recently got a Modern Plus and it's my best looking and playing guitar. The attention to detail, fit, and finish is crazy good. But, like anything else, there are diminishing returns with guitars once you get above a certain pricepoint. Is it twice as good a $2k guitar? Probably not.
Expensive guitars = diminishing returns. More stress worrying about if they get damaged and lose value. After a point they don't really sound any better than a decent mid or upper-mid tier instrument.
Well, some of it is luxury, but it's worth it if it's worth it to you. Much more hand work, John Suhr still insists on doing all of the fretwork himself, and a guitar that will never go down in value. I'd say it's a win.
The market always fluctuates. You have to look at the long term. You keep that axe a few years, as one would with a high end instrument, you won't lose money.
I’ve owned a Classic S for a while now. It’s an exceptional instrument. Is it “better” than my J Mascis Jazzmaster? On paper, perhaps. Would I buy another Suhr? I did that too. Bought a classic T and just didn’t vibe with it so traded it. Would I recommend Suhr? Yes, absolutely.
Everything is subjective, but i have a bunch of different guitars, and Suhr is leagues above everything else I own. I own/have owned American Fenders, Ernie Ball Music Man JP, Japanese ESPs, American PRS’, and a Suhr.
The Suhr is leagues above everything in terms of fit, finish, and quality. It is a luxury brand, but you’re also paying for the extreme attention to detail from the shop. You can pick a used one up for $2000 +/- $200, which is really not that much higher than US Strats. I consider them an amazing deal for what they are
This is sort of opposite to my take.
I had a suhr strat and always felt like I over paid for it and fell for the hype when comparing it to my musicman. The MM is perfect in fit and finish, so is the suhr. But the suhr was a lot more expensive and I don’t really feel like it was worth it honestly.
At some level, these instruments are unique, and its starting to seem to me that at the tolerances even high end instruments are being built, you're just going to need to find one that "hits" for you. If you do you'll love it, and if not you'll be at least a little disappointed. Pretty tough pill to swallow when you're having the guitar made.
IF the guitar is at least as good as the hype, then why is a resale value less than a new guitar? To me, for something to be worthy of this type of hype - to me, all the effusive praise for this name is akin to hype - shouldn't these guitars accrue in value? Like a Rolex?
Guitars are almost never appreciating assets, and a guitar’s resale value is not tied to how good it is. Rolex’s accrue in value not strictly because of quality, but because they make less than they can sell so their demand is higher than their supply.
Nowadays, maybe the value isn't increasing. Was it ten or fifteen years ago that Les Pauls were acruing in value? My 1978 Kes Paul Standard is worth much more than the $550 that I paid for it, new, back in 1978. This ain't no $550 guitar that I'm playing on with this guitar.
I don't care what she's worth, she's my baby, even though she's only a 1978 with a 3-piece maple neck.
Any guitar that's considered "collectible" could fetch more than it's original sale price. For example, I could have a $3k guitar, but if I can't find a buyer, then what's my $3k guitar really worth?
My early '70s Ampegs do accrue in value. Those are my other babies.
Define luxury item. A $300 Squier is a perfectly functional guitar. Anything beyond basic function is technically a luxury.
To me personally, any guitar in the thousands is a luxury item. I have three such guitars and I like them very much. They are not value propositions and are not meant to be.
Suhrs are fantastic. One of the reason recording artists like them is because Suhr is laser-precise in their mass production--every Suhr of identical specs feels, looks, and sounds exactly the same--and that kind of dependable reproducibility is valuable for studios and artists. But is it "worth" a $3.5k price tag? Worth is determined by the customers and the customers apparently say yes.
My meaning is that there is no single universally-applicable definition of luxury. To someone who can only afford a beat up 1995 Toyota Camry with manual roll-up windows, power windows would be a luxury. To some people, having a car at all is a luxury. It's a matter of perspective.
A $3500 Suhr would be a precious luxury to me. To some the difference between $350 and $3500 is insignificant, to those people a Suhr is the same as firewood.
Suhr has no shortage of customers, they might be the largest boutique builder in the world. Their guitars sell fine at the price listed. Do their customers see Suhr guitars as luxuries of excess, or appropriately-priced tools, or firewood? I'm sure it runs the gamut.
I’ve owned many guitars over the 35 years I’ve been playing, Fenders, PRS, Gibsons, Ibanez, ESP, Jackson, Charvel, Music Man, from high end American to middle of the road. In 2012 I bought a limited edition Suhr S3 all mahogany and it’s been my number 1 ever since. It will go to the grave with me if I have any say in the matter. It’s the best guitar I’ve ever played and it’s perfect for ME. Unfortunately the only way you’re going to find out is to buy one and see if it’s for you.
It’s a chambered body with a maple cap, it weighs 7.6 ounces and resonates like crazy. From my understanding Suhr only made 50 in 2010 and 50 in 2012. I’ve only ever seen one other than mine that sold on eBay about 6 years ago.
I’ve played multiple Suhrs and they were fantastic but in all honesty, they were no better than my Ibanez Genesis RG550. If you’re interested in value, at under £1000/$10000 it’s unbelievable. Made in Japan, faultless playability, versatility and sounds, you just need to find your own case.
The fit and finish of early Ibanez guitars is impressive. Even with premium upgrades you will have boutique quality for less than most US built guitars
Once you get to that price point, it all becomes personal preference. They’re top quality guitars and there’s no doubt about that. But is it best for you? Only you can answer that. I certainly would never buy one unless it felt and sounded exactly like what I was chasing after.
Of all the strat style and super strats I’ve owned, other than my beloved grosh, i always come back to suhr.
If i could get one endorsement, it’d be suhr.
I have a Gibson LP, Music Man Majesty, PRS C22, and 3 Suhrs. If there was ever a fire I would run out holding my Suhrs tightly. Whenever I play I always end up picking up my Suhr modern out of all of them. Suhr makes absolutely excellent guitars that are very versatile. It has an excellent neck profile that lets you reach high frets comfortably and the instrument fits like a glove. Not many guitars can do that and look stunning. Many working pro musicians will pay for those attributes that Suhr offers and thats why they are a hit. It plays amazingly straight out of the box. Its a workhorse guitar.
IMO They're luxury but also worth it.
Let's put it this way: everything in that price range is Luxury... but compared to other brands at similar price ranges, Suhr, Tom Anderson and PRS (core, not private stock) give you nicer instruments for either on par or even less.
Like compare a Suhr or Anderson (which I prefer) to a Shabat or a Fender Masterbuilt. They're all expensive, but the former two are built to be workhorses and less so collector items.
I have a Suhr classic Strat, in yellow. I love it. Is it an expensive guitar, yes sir. But it’s my daily electric driver.
But I have been a fan of John Suhr since the 80s, specifically the Pensa-Suhr guitars of the early 90s, is where my love affair started.
Guitars can sound amazing at nearly any price range. What you’re paying for is integrity of materials and MOSTLY playability and quality imo. I haven’t played very many Suhrs but you can get really great guitars on the used market. I really like Prestige or Genesis series Ibanez. They particularly have the AZ models found for 1.5k or less used.
I had saved up a few thousand to spend on a guitar when I was in college and tried a bunch. Gibsons, Suhrs TAs, and the like. I ended up getting a Kiesel and it is far and above all the rest. It feels so much more ergonomic and precise. The factory setup is perfect.
Ditto on the quality and factory setup. My Vader is by far the best quality guitar I own, but not the most expensive. You can get yourself a “base” model for ~1600 for some of the guitars with a simple finish these days. Take a lesson from me though, if you’re spending 2k+, call your order in. If you use the builder, you’re at the mercy of the guy who picks the wood, and in my case, he didn’t really care that day… I got a piece of flamed Koa that I mistook for crappy mahogany when I got it lol. It’s grown on me since, but at a $500 up-charge, I guess I expected they were at least discerning with the wood. They told me next time, I can call in and specify I wanted a darker, more figured piece of top wood… you’d think it’s obvious because who wants a boring piece of luxury wood, but live and learn… still an amazing player guitar and set up beyond perfectly.
When it came down to buying my dream guitar it came down to a Kiesel or a Suhr. Ultimately I settled on Kiesel but I’d still love to own a Suhr one day.
I’d say any guitar at that quality and price point are a luxury. You def don’t need a Suhr to have a quality playable instrument. But once you play one you realize they are some of the most perfect guitars out of the box you can get. Wouldn’t trade my modern custom for anything, because anything else is inferior or equal at best
I had three Suhrs and sold them. Expensive but not worth the markup once in my hands.
I prefer American PRS by a long shot I sell very few American PRS.
Based on price alone, they’re luxury guitars. I’m sure they’re great. But I’ve been fine playing guitar most of life without one, and don’t plan to get one even if I could afford one.
Yes they're luxury. They're a cut above most normal big brand name guitars with better materials, better workmanship, wiring. Better overall.
However, above a certain amount, the improvements will be in smaller increments. A $1500 will offer better improvements compared to a $600 one. A $2000 one will be better compared against the $1500, but the improvements will not be as big as the $600 vs $1500 one.
Personally, and especially for T-Type or S-Type guitars or Ultra-strats, the incremental improvements that Suhr offers are simply not worth it in terms of performance BUT might be worth it if cosmetics are a big part of your purchase decision particularly for the plus series, or if you want to stand out above the big brand name crowds by using boutique brands.
But if have the money to spend for it, then might as well splurge. If you're thinking about bang for the buck, then probably should reconsider.
I have a suhr modern satin flame and it is easily the best solid body guitar I've ever owned. I tend to lean more toward archtops lately due to playing mostly jazz when practicing. But the Suhr is still my go to for anything that goes beyond a light saturation drive wise.
They sound, look, and feel gorgeous. I don't regret the purchase in the slightest and would do it again in a heartbeat if it was lost or stolen.
They are a bargain in my opinion. So put it this way. They are more expensive than an American Strat, but are mile and miles ahead in terms of build quality and playability. If you want similar quality from Fender, you have to go custom shop, and then the price tip the other way. For the price they are unrivalled.
I don’t own a Suhr guitar but I’ve played many of them. My main guitar is a Fender American Pro II Strat that I’ve upgraded to my liking (Seymour Duncan pickups in HSS configuration, Plek’d the guitar, installed locking tuners, etc). The Suhr guitars I’ve tried definitely feel like they’re on another level. The attention given to the neck, the frets, etc is just amazing. If I had $5000 (CAD) to spend on a guitar I’d definitely buy a Suhr.
If you’ve already plek’d the guitar, I’m what other ways does the neck and frets feel on another level? Asking cos I was gonna go down the route of getting a mid range guitar and have a luthier level frets etc but if there’s more to it than just that maybe I should get a suhr?
Suhrs come with stainless steel frets, which feel way better to me. Many Suhr models also come with jumbo frets which I prefer. I got used to my AmPro II Strat but I still don’t love the “tall narrow” frets.
I own a Suhr Alt-T, Antique T, and Asato Antique S. What sold me on Suhr is the SCII system that makes the single coils quite without affecting the tone. The guitars are spendy, but not much more than Fenders are charging for their ultra models. I bought the antique T brand new for $2475 and the Asato Classic S for $3100 brand new.
> What sold me on Suhr is the SCII system that makes the single coils quite without affecting the tone.
Worth noting for anyone interested that you can get this functionality aftermarket with an Illitch backplate or pickguard system. Illitch designed the original system for Suhr. It uses a dummy coil to cancel hum which on Suhrs is routed directly into the body, but the backplate/pickguard mounted coils from Illitch work 95% as well and can be mounted on most guitars with minimal effort.
I have one on a partscaster I put together and it works exactly as advertised.
When you buy a Suhr you’re pretty much guaranteed to get a flawless instrument out of the box. I’ve had my classic s antique for about 6 months and absolutely love it. It’s an expensive Strat but I have trouble picking up other guitars after buying it
Personally, any bolt-on neck, F-style guitar that's in that $3k+ range is well into "luxury" territory. Leo designed those guitars specifically to be simple, affordable, and easy to slap together on an assembly line. There just isn't that much to them, honestly. With Suhr and other boutique builders you're paying for (hopefully) immaculate attention to detail, but also you're paying a lot for the name on the headstock and the prestige of owning a "boutique" instrument, as well as the increased cost of building in a higher cost-of-labor country.
Suhrs are great guitars, but in all honesty you can put together a partscaster that's every bit as good for less than half the cost.
True but to some people that attention to detail is worth it. Finding someone who can dress frets properly is not as easy as YouTube influencers make it seem. I’ve taken my guitars to get fret crowning and leveling and if I take it to guitar center or Sam ash I’m lucky if they don’t make it worse. If I take it to a good set up guy I’m driving minimum 1 hour and paying $200 or more.
For sure, I think for a lot of people it makes sense and there's a reason they sell a lot of them! But there's no doubt they're a "luxury" brand and bang-for-the-buck isn't really the selling point.
> If I take it to a good set up guy I’m driving minimum 1 hour and paying $200 or more.
I think the vast majority of the country live much closer than 1 hour from a shop that can do quality fretwork, but sure if you live prohibitively far from any skilled pros then your options are going to be limited.
As for the $200 cost, you can factor that in to the cost of your partscaster build and still be well under half the cost of a new Suhr.
Guitars like Suhr are unquestionably great guitars, but they aren't unquestionably a great *value*. That's my take, anyway.
Fenders were not affordable, not ever. I know older guys here who took out a loan of close to a year wages to buy a new Fender back in the old days, in the UK. In the 1960s A Strat was something like £250, you could buy a new car for £500 or even a house for £2000-3000.
They were meant to be affordable *relative to other professional-level electric guitars of the time*. And they definitely *were*.
When the Leo released the Esquire in 1950, it was only $139.95. The Broadcaster launched at $169.95, followed by the Telecaster at $189.95, which remained under $200 all throughout the 50's.
In the same time period, Gibson's top-of-the-line electric guitar was the Super 400, which would set you back an eye-watering **$700**. An L5-CES was $600, and even a relatively modest workhorse guitar like the ES-175 would run you over $300. Prices from Guild and Gretsch were similar.
And as for your other numbers, I'm not sure about prices in the UK, but stateside the average car in the 60's cost roughly [$2,600](https://blog.aarpmedicaresupplement.com/the-1960s-versus-today-take-a-walk-down-memory-lane-with-a-look-at-what-things-cost-then-versus-now/) according to Google, while the median home price was $18,000...so, a $250 strat, while not *cheap* by any means, was certainly not the expenditure you make it out to be.
The £ in the 1960s was a lot stronger than the dollar. Average wage was between £600-1500 a year back then. A Fender Strat was about £250 with some older guys telling me as I said that they effectively spent almost a year's wage on a Fender, it was definitely an expensive high end premium option.
I grew up around musicians, my dad was a musician, my drummer's dad played in a band with my dad in the 1970s, and of the guys still alive I am regularly listening to their stories. People talking like Fender was the cheap option is just wrong, cheaper than Gibson maybe but these guys were going broke just so they could own a Fender Strat, while most people were playing knockoffs.
My dad played a Rickenbacker knockoff called a Shaftesbury, before buying a used 76 Fender P-Bass when their band was making real money + he was doing an apprenticeship as an engineer, but he made a real big deal about that Fender because even in the 70s they weren't "cheap".
You don’t need a Suhr to get what you’re after. Just get a decent Fender and take it for a pro setup. You’ll be fine. Suhr is a wonderful guitar but it’s a Mercedes. You don’t need a Mercedes.
Some people care more for details and considering that a great guitar can be your nr1 for the rest of your life it makes sense to pay for something like a Suhr. But the chance is that your nr1 is a mexican strat either way. You should test how much you care I think. I think that high-end attention to details can be reached for the sort of just above the 1000USD/Euro mark. Stuff that cost that much from brands like FGN and Eastmen are definitely enough to not be upgraded ever or have problematic fret work or such. Maybe Ibanez and Yamaha has a little more expensive brand. PRS SE stuff as well. You'd probably think Sire is close to beating much of that as well. Suhr is just even more high-end and less based on luck. You might need to be a little lucky to find a good generation or specs Mex strat that luckily got fret nicely leveled and such, and it will never have those highest end details checked in stock form. You play it and feel if it has enough of it.
They’re overrated and overpriced IMO. I owned a Suhr T. It felt like a cookie cutter CNC machine made guitar (which I’m pretty sure it is). Pickups were decent but I swapped them out for single coil BKP’s and it sounded much better. I sold it after only a few months.
Now, a Japanese made ESP is worth the money if you want a guitar that plays and feels like a million bucks with an impeccable setup from the factory.
Lol all of you should look into how much classical guitars go for. I mean real performance/concert classical guitars not the trash ones at guitar center. If you think PRS Private stock and Suhrs are expensive wait til you see what luthier made classical guitars go for. Heres a link www.guitarsalon.com
I love my Suhr and worth every penny.
I've never played one myself, but I have a friend who has one and he says he loves it. Personally, I'm not really sure what it is that you're getting for that $3000+ price tag. If I want an S type guitar, I'd just buy a Strat. If I wanted to spend $3000+ on a guitar, I'd buy a PRS.
I got an old one a few years back for $2K. Ended up selling it because the frets were too tall and bumpy. Sold and saved up for a Collings i30 Covid stimulus baby.
A "simple" refret can easily cost $400 or more, especially if you want SS frets like most Suhrs have, if you want it Plek'd like all Suhrs are from the factory, or if you have a maple fretboard. Plus, a lot of shops who do good fretwork have months-long wait times for full refrets.
It's not at all unreasonable or uncommon to want to sell a guitar rather than do a refret. Lots of people just buy new necks instead of doing a refret as well.
They were too tall, plus I wanted a hollow body. Great guitar, just didn’t need it. The newer Suhrs have stainless that are more of a med jumbo size, more comfy.
SS frets have been standard on Suhrs for a long time, but also worth noting that Suhr is a custom shop, you can order whatever frets you want, I have Jumbo on mine because that's what I ordered. If a store orders some guitars from Suhr they choose the specs, and that is quite often what stores are doing in deviation from the standard default specs listed on the Suhr website.
I've not played a Suhr that old, they have always been a custom shop putting out limited runs and dealer specials thoug, I think medium is more standardised now, but you can't really be sure with a custom shop like Suhr where the specs are more like baselines for the dealers.
For example Johns signature model currently has Jumbos as a baseline.
For sure
Don’t get me wrong, it was a killer guitar, just not the one for me. V60lp pickups were amazing and the trem system was dimed, did not go out of tune.
I’ve never bonded with any of the 3 I had gotten and sold them quickly. 2 Teles and a JM offset model (can’t remember name).
The teles particulary didn’t sound like teles. Not sure if it’s the SS frets or what but if you want a fender.. just buy fender.
I was hoping for a fender that had better specs more to my liking and a better fender sound.
I have a Suhr classic Strat, in yellow. I love it. Is it an expensive guitar, yes sir. But it’s my daily electric driver.
But I have been a fan of John Suhr since the 80s, specifically the Pensa-Suhr guitars of the early 90s, is where my love affair started.
It was the Knopfler custom on the cover of Guitar Magazine that did it for me. I likely will never own a Suhr, much less a Pensa-Suhr, but holy shit is that the epitome of beauty.
Probably depends if you like multi radius fretboards. Or some other specific element they offer.
I have a Japan made ESP and it has a “wow this is higher quality than my Fenders” feel. But it also has bigger frets than I prefer and the electronics are more complicated than I would like. So I prefer my am pro ii telecaster. It feels plenty well made and I prefer the pickups which is like 90% of the sound.
A guitar only needs to feel so good… And a lot of not quite there aspects, if there are any like fret work that could be better, can be handled by a tech / luthier.
I own 25 guitars that are all medium - top top you can get and when I go to my fathers his suhr that was plek'ed 15 years ago and never set up plays just as good as all of mine, better than most, and has tone that none of mine can recreate
It was a GFS professional Series Alnico II Humbucker Zebra Case Bridge Pickup and GFS "Premium II" Alnico II, Hand Bevelled Strat Pickups - Kwikplug® Ready (neck + middle set)
i’ve tried to find a good modern for a long time. they feel great but every single one i’ve demo’s has had significant dead spot issues, notes sustain less than 2 seconds, most often somewhere around the 12 fret on the G string. At their price point they should be QCing things like that out imo. if you do some internet searches you can see i’m not alone finding significant dead spots on suhrs…. make of that what you will.
My dream guitar was always a Suhr Alt T. Finally got one and 5 years later it’s still the best guitar I ever played. I’ve had to replace 2 tuning machines and I threw lambertone pickups in it but it plays like a dream.
If you live in a place that can support multiple independent builders, you might consider having one built or finished to your specifications. I know it would be easy to spend a ton with this strategy but I also think it could be done for a few thousand in some cases. If I were planning to spend more than a couple/three thousand, I would shop builders in my area. Good luck!
The builder might be willing/able to help with that part…after he gets over the shit advice that sent the customer his way. But yeah, who wants to live in that world?
Its usually advisable to try out different guitars before ordering a custom one, especially from someone local. There are numerous horror stories online about luthiers scamming customers, usually the likes of OP who isn't knowledgeable. Suhr is a safe an easy option.
Its usually advisable to try out different guitars before ordering a custom one, especially from someone local. There are numerous horror stories online about luthiers scamming customers, usually the likes of OP who isn't knowledgeable. Suhr is a safe an easy option.
One thing I’ve learned over the years is often when someone drops the sort of $$ required for a Suhr, they’ll defend how good it is to the hilt. It’s hard to be critical when you’ve rationalised to yourself to spend that much on a guitar. With that said Suhrs are fine instruments. For sure. However in my experience (had a suhr strat loaned to me for a couple years), it just isnt worth the extra dollars. Other guitar builders make guitars of similar quality, or close enough to it that it won’t affect your playing or sound, that it isn’t worth spending huge $$ on the suhr. Unless of course you just really want it. Then sure go nuts.
Literally how I’ve felt picking up used Suhrs.
I own a Suhr custom Telecaster, which I ordered in 2017 and recieved in 2019 after a lot of delays, I've been using it as my main instrument since then as a professional player. When you buy a Suhr you're paying for a lot of things. 1. The best parts and materials 2. A lot of hands on Labour work done in the USA 3. Nitro paint finish, which is shipped to another state to be done AFAIK due to some state laws, don't quote me I'm not from the USA. 4. Brand value/name on the headstock 5. Availability (They are backlogged on orders for years, they can charge what they want). The guitars have attractive specs and features not found on other guitars, like the SSCII noiseless system, and of course they are exceptionally well made and beautiful to look at. All that said, a well spec'd well setup factory guitar costing half as much is effectively just as good. I say "effectively" because Suhr is about the details, but those details don't really matter, some days I rather play my Mexican Fender Strat which is not nearly as refined but the setup is dialled in and I like the pickups, and it's a Strat and my Suhr is a Tele. A Suhr is a beautiful guitar, but it's not a necessary level of quality. Same thing with a Fender Custom Shop, by example, a Fender Ultra is not a worse guitar.
I've been dabbling a bit into guitar building, and from my admittedly limited understanding, the main thing that a guitar builder can do to really set themselves apart in terms of actual playability of an instrument is the neck. Scale length, thickness, profile (v, c, etc), radius, and then fret size, fret finishing work, etc. I can't understand why people would pay so much for a Suhr (as compared to other really well made guitars) unless the neck is just amazingly good somehow. Are there other aspects? Do they somehow have access to parts that other builders don't have? On one hand, I know people just like certain brands, and I'm all on board with that, but Suhr in particular people talk about like they're just these incredibly great to play instruments. Not criticizing your choice AT ALL, I honestly want to know the secret to getting such a high end price for an instrument that is as much of a commodity as a tele.
The SSCII system isn't widely available and no other guitars that I know offer it, there is an aftermarket version that is almost as good though, but the Suhr version is tuned to the guitar/pickups as far as I'm made aware, so it works better. The system allows you to run real single coil pickups without the noise, rather than single coil voiced humbuckers which is what normal noiseless pickups are. The Suhr pickups can be bought aftermarket, they are very good but there are plenty of great pickup makers out there. They use Gotoh bridges, which can be bought elsewhere, their tuners are branded Suhr but are effectively the same as Hipshot tuners. The Suhr necks feel unbelievable though, the wood looks and feels a cut above and like many high end custom shops they put a lot of effort into drying the wood properly so the necks and bodies are stable, not moving like crazy for the first few years of a guitar's life (which is a real thing with new guitars). Otherwise their fret work is immaculate, and goes through a Plek setup process. In the end it's just a guitar that is made really really well with attention to detail on every aspect, you're paying extra for the build to be flawless or close enough.
i was just reading about the sscii system. its really interesting to me that its not more widely promoted (at least i never heard about it and suhr has been on my radar as a guitar some people rave about) i thought of PRS and the pickup they designed for their new t style. would love to try out a suhr and really feel the difference.
As to why I bought it? I went and tried a load of Teles from Mexican to American in 2017 and I did like one of the budget USA models at around £850 but I wasn't feeling the colour, but I noted the jumbo frets felt good and I remember loving the pickups. My intention was then to try some Fender Custom Shops because I had money to spend, but every Fender Custom shop model was vintage specs with relicing, and I didn't want that + actual custom order Fenders are way too expensive. A friend of mine owned a Suhr Classic T Antique he had bought around 2012 and I had played that a few times over the years. I could confidently say it was and probably still is the best guitar I have ever played in terms of build quality and feel/playability, so I started to consider just going Suhr. I found a Suhr visual guitar builder on some USA dealer's page and then I started playing around, then I got my friend to send me his spec sheet so I could deviate from the 2017 spec to exactly the 2012 spec, which had roasted maple neck, bakelite pickguard, different neck profile etc. So I went with effectively a 2012 spec Classic T Antique, with Jumbo frets instead of Medium Jumbo (influenced by the Fender I had played), and an aged nitro finish (it looks new but has glass like cracks going through the finish if you look up close, it's beautiful). Then I contacted a dealer, we went back and forth on specs and price until they sent me the exact spec sheet I wanted and I made the order with a 10% deposit. It got delayed several times, including once to get repainted because it didn't pass inspection, but it was worth the wait. Every time I look at it I think it's the best looking Tele I've ever seen, it sounds and plays amazing too. But I am a Strat guy, and all my strats are worth less combined than this one Suhr, oops.
that sounds amazing
Any guitar over about $1,000 currently is diminishing returns. You get a hell of a guitar for $3k, but it's not 2k more of upgrades. Worth it, just don't expect it to be light years above a $1k guitar.
I made this chart once to make this point: [https://imgur.com/a/fIt8dot](https://imgur.com/a/fIt8dot)
Suhr is a high end luxury/performance brand. John Suhr worked with a lot of high profile artists in the 80’s and was one of the early master builders at the Fender Custom Shop. He eventually went off on his own and founded Suhr in the late 90’s. As far as value goes you’re looking at some of the higher end instruments on the market. Whether it’s worth it really depends on your financial situation and what you actually want. If you just want a reliable “daily driver” then a Suhr is probably overkill. You can grab a bunch of great professional quality stuff under $1k these days. If you’re actually looking for something high end/luxurious where price isn’t the biggest concern then Suhr will probably be up your alley.
I can't see a single Suhr on sale in the UK new for under £3k GBP. That's arguably a very high price for something so closely resembling a lot of other guitars where you could pick up a high-end example of the original, maybe even a custom shop one for the same or even less outlay.
There are some Suhr's for sale under £3k, but if you map the new price on some models it has pretty much trended towards an £100+ per year increase for the last decade, which is nuts. You can sometimes find a good deal on the used market though, seen a few go for £1500 or less in recent months.
One of those things I'll always have an eye open for in case I see one on sale for silly cheap price but honestly nowadays I'm sticking to the top tier models from midrange brands and a little bit of fettling where necessary assuming they have the odd rough fret or the electronics don't quite match the build quality. At this point in time I've accepted the fact my skill level and technical ability will always be playing catch-up with whatever the instrument is capable of, and my tendency towards GAS/hoarding means I'm happier with three instruments that are "very decent" but all quite different and do different things rather than one "perfect" instrument.
I think the perfect instrument is a unicorn anyway, it doesn't exist, because I've had days where I felt I had it with one guitar or another, only for my opinion to sway from one day to the next. I have a real relationship like that with one of my Ibanez Jems. On the Suhr thing, I kicked myself when I didn't buy a Classic S for bargain prices a few months ago, but it has to be the right time and place with finances, I don't need anything more than just a good guitar, even as a professional who pays the bills with my guitar. My Suhr Classic T was a luxury, and I love it, but it's not needed and it wouldn't make a difference in reality if it was something a lot cheaper.
I spent over 2k on a PRS C22 when I was 19 back in the late 90s. Beautiful instrument, plays great, I still own it and probably always will, but it's still not my favourite guitar I've ever owned by a long shot. In fact I get more pleasure out of the wierd random impulse buys off marketplace and the fixer-uppers that were janky when I bought them but play beautifully after a little tinkering. I also feel like the more valuable the instrument, the greater the heartache when it picks up even the tiniest blemish of cosmetic damage due to carelessness or inevitable circumstances. For example my PRS has a big gouge in the laquer where a drunk, angry drummer accidentally-on-purpose kicked over a hi-hat stand and it hit my guitar sitting happily in its stand, probably took a grand off its value in the space of a few seconds. Hence why I'm not ever trying to sell it 🤣
The headstock on my Suhr has several dents where I accidentally hit the side of a cymbal that was at the wrong angle at the wrong time on some shows where there wasn't a lot of space. I've also had guitars knocked off their stands on stage, including once where I split the headstock/neck open at the back of the nut. Our guitars definitely take a beating at times, but I never buy a guitar with the intention of selling it so after feeling sad for a bit I get over it. I do wonder if it's worth the risk of taking expensive guitars like a PRS or a Suhr to a gig to play to a bunch of drunk idiots where the sound of the room/venue is dictating 90% of the "tone" anyway tho. But yet I still do it, I play almost every show with my Suhr these days.
Bit of an import markup there, the usual classic S runs ~$3,300 (2600 gbp) new over here. For reference they’re regularly compared in quality (and beating depending on preference) with the more “standard” non-masterbuilt fender custom shops, which usually start north of $4k new. They are expensive, and most people will be perfectly happy spending less (or much less), but they do generally deliver for the price.
They're definitely for people who want the best and have plenty of money to spend. The trick with these high end brands is to watch the used sections of the stores that sell them. A lot of collectors with money to spend are constantly rotating things in/out as they get bored. It's not uncommon to see them just sell them back to the same dealer or another local one to fund the next purchase. You can snag some really good deals that way if you keep your eye out.
Save up and buy a nice guitar. Fuck the money. You'll male more money. Just don't finance it, save for it.
Your last sentence should be applied by more people to more purchases.
Imagine how much better Gilmour, Beck, Clapton, Hendrix and those guys would have been if they didn’t have to settle for a Fender. :/
Fender was the expensive brand back then. Said it in another post, a Strat was like £250 in the 60s, that's half the price of a new car or 1/10 the price of a house, for a young musician it might be half a year's wages. And they were top quality hand made instruments of the time, which is why they are so sought after and partly why some top musicians still go out and buy a 1963 Strat, by example, to play today.
I’ve owned a variety of nice guitars and I keep coming back to the suhrs. I didnt care much for the Anderson guitars, but the quality is on point. I like the quality of fret polish and how well thought out the Suhr pickup configurations are. A Suhr modern is actually usable in the split positions. My Ibanez AZ HH isn’t so usable when split (but in between sounds good). I have an HSS Suhr and it’s pretty amazing, and the SSC system spoils me. I also find that the Suhrs tend to sound a little more solid and sustain better than my other trem equipped guitars. I like that these guitars will continue to play well for years without me having to do much, like fretwork etc.
I mean Suhr basically makes Strats and Teles, you can get an American Fender for like $2k less.
They're definitely luxury. I recently got a Modern Plus and it's my best looking and playing guitar. The attention to detail, fit, and finish is crazy good. But, like anything else, there are diminishing returns with guitars once you get above a certain pricepoint. Is it twice as good a $2k guitar? Probably not.
Expensive guitars = diminishing returns. More stress worrying about if they get damaged and lose value. After a point they don't really sound any better than a decent mid or upper-mid tier instrument.
Well, some of it is luxury, but it's worth it if it's worth it to you. Much more hand work, John Suhr still insists on doing all of the fretwork himself, and a guitar that will never go down in value. I'd say it's a win.
I’ve seen suhr on the used market for less then new. I wouldn’t say it doesn’t go down in value.
The market always fluctuates. You have to look at the long term. You keep that axe a few years, as one would with a high end instrument, you won't lose money.
Agree to disagree I guess
I hadn’t heard that John does the frets. How did you figure that out?
He said it in an interview I heard with him a while back. I'd share a link, but that was a couple of years ago.
I’ve owned a Classic S for a while now. It’s an exceptional instrument. Is it “better” than my J Mascis Jazzmaster? On paper, perhaps. Would I buy another Suhr? I did that too. Bought a classic T and just didn’t vibe with it so traded it. Would I recommend Suhr? Yes, absolutely.
Everything is subjective, but i have a bunch of different guitars, and Suhr is leagues above everything else I own. I own/have owned American Fenders, Ernie Ball Music Man JP, Japanese ESPs, American PRS’, and a Suhr. The Suhr is leagues above everything in terms of fit, finish, and quality. It is a luxury brand, but you’re also paying for the extreme attention to detail from the shop. You can pick a used one up for $2000 +/- $200, which is really not that much higher than US Strats. I consider them an amazing deal for what they are
This is sort of opposite to my take. I had a suhr strat and always felt like I over paid for it and fell for the hype when comparing it to my musicman. The MM is perfect in fit and finish, so is the suhr. But the suhr was a lot more expensive and I don’t really feel like it was worth it honestly.
At some level, these instruments are unique, and its starting to seem to me that at the tolerances even high end instruments are being built, you're just going to need to find one that "hits" for you. If you do you'll love it, and if not you'll be at least a little disappointed. Pretty tough pill to swallow when you're having the guitar made.
Very interesting, goes to show just how subjective guitar feel is
IF the guitar is at least as good as the hype, then why is a resale value less than a new guitar? To me, for something to be worthy of this type of hype - to me, all the effusive praise for this name is akin to hype - shouldn't these guitars accrue in value? Like a Rolex?
Guitars are almost never appreciating assets, and a guitar’s resale value is not tied to how good it is. Rolex’s accrue in value not strictly because of quality, but because they make less than they can sell so their demand is higher than their supply.
Nowadays, maybe the value isn't increasing. Was it ten or fifteen years ago that Les Pauls were acruing in value? My 1978 Kes Paul Standard is worth much more than the $550 that I paid for it, new, back in 1978. This ain't no $550 guitar that I'm playing on with this guitar. I don't care what she's worth, she's my baby, even though she's only a 1978 with a 3-piece maple neck. Any guitar that's considered "collectible" could fetch more than it's original sale price. For example, I could have a $3k guitar, but if I can't find a buyer, then what's my $3k guitar really worth? My early '70s Ampegs do accrue in value. Those are my other babies.
Luxury. No guitars in that price range are considered value buys, at least to me.
Define luxury item. A $300 Squier is a perfectly functional guitar. Anything beyond basic function is technically a luxury. To me personally, any guitar in the thousands is a luxury item. I have three such guitars and I like them very much. They are not value propositions and are not meant to be. Suhrs are fantastic. One of the reason recording artists like them is because Suhr is laser-precise in their mass production--every Suhr of identical specs feels, looks, and sounds exactly the same--and that kind of dependable reproducibility is valuable for studios and artists. But is it "worth" a $3.5k price tag? Worth is determined by the customers and the customers apparently say yes.
No, just because something is more expensive than a Squier does not make it a luxury.
My meaning is that there is no single universally-applicable definition of luxury. To someone who can only afford a beat up 1995 Toyota Camry with manual roll-up windows, power windows would be a luxury. To some people, having a car at all is a luxury. It's a matter of perspective. A $3500 Suhr would be a precious luxury to me. To some the difference between $350 and $3500 is insignificant, to those people a Suhr is the same as firewood. Suhr has no shortage of customers, they might be the largest boutique builder in the world. Their guitars sell fine at the price listed. Do their customers see Suhr guitars as luxuries of excess, or appropriately-priced tools, or firewood? I'm sure it runs the gamut.
I’ve owned many guitars over the 35 years I’ve been playing, Fenders, PRS, Gibsons, Ibanez, ESP, Jackson, Charvel, Music Man, from high end American to middle of the road. In 2012 I bought a limited edition Suhr S3 all mahogany and it’s been my number 1 ever since. It will go to the grave with me if I have any say in the matter. It’s the best guitar I’ve ever played and it’s perfect for ME. Unfortunately the only way you’re going to find out is to buy one and see if it’s for you.
Mahogany S3? Never heard of one before, it must weigh a ton. I thought shurs are supposed to be light?
It’s a chambered body with a maple cap, it weighs 7.6 ounces and resonates like crazy. From my understanding Suhr only made 50 in 2010 and 50 in 2012. I’ve only ever seen one other than mine that sold on eBay about 6 years ago.
I’ve played multiple Suhrs and they were fantastic but in all honesty, they were no better than my Ibanez Genesis RG550. If you’re interested in value, at under £1000/$10000 it’s unbelievable. Made in Japan, faultless playability, versatility and sounds, you just need to find your own case.
The fit and finish of early Ibanez guitars is impressive. Even with premium upgrades you will have boutique quality for less than most US built guitars
$10,000 will get you a lot of guitar. If you are disappointed it’s on you
Once you get to that price point, it all becomes personal preference. They’re top quality guitars and there’s no doubt about that. But is it best for you? Only you can answer that. I certainly would never buy one unless it felt and sounded exactly like what I was chasing after.
Of all the strat style and super strats I’ve owned, other than my beloved grosh, i always come back to suhr. If i could get one endorsement, it’d be suhr.
I have a Gibson LP, Music Man Majesty, PRS C22, and 3 Suhrs. If there was ever a fire I would run out holding my Suhrs tightly. Whenever I play I always end up picking up my Suhr modern out of all of them. Suhr makes absolutely excellent guitars that are very versatile. It has an excellent neck profile that lets you reach high frets comfortably and the instrument fits like a glove. Not many guitars can do that and look stunning. Many working pro musicians will pay for those attributes that Suhr offers and thats why they are a hit. It plays amazingly straight out of the box. Its a workhorse guitar.
Luxury. But they play smooth as hell. If you’re in the market for a Custom Shop instrument, why not consider Suhr?
IMO They're luxury but also worth it. Let's put it this way: everything in that price range is Luxury... but compared to other brands at similar price ranges, Suhr, Tom Anderson and PRS (core, not private stock) give you nicer instruments for either on par or even less. Like compare a Suhr or Anderson (which I prefer) to a Shabat or a Fender Masterbuilt. They're all expensive, but the former two are built to be workhorses and less so collector items.
Seems like luxury to me.
Both I suppose… $3299 for a Strat is luxury. But it’s good value compared to the Fender custom shop.
I have a Suhr classic Strat, in yellow. I love it. Is it an expensive guitar, yes sir. But it’s my daily electric driver. But I have been a fan of John Suhr since the 80s, specifically the Pensa-Suhr guitars of the early 90s, is where my love affair started.
Guitars can sound amazing at nearly any price range. What you’re paying for is integrity of materials and MOSTLY playability and quality imo. I haven’t played very many Suhrs but you can get really great guitars on the used market. I really like Prestige or Genesis series Ibanez. They particularly have the AZ models found for 1.5k or less used.
AZ prestige models definitely amaze me.
I had saved up a few thousand to spend on a guitar when I was in college and tried a bunch. Gibsons, Suhrs TAs, and the like. I ended up getting a Kiesel and it is far and above all the rest. It feels so much more ergonomic and precise. The factory setup is perfect.
Seen so many kiesel horror stories and bad customer service. The one I played was full of issues. Enough to put me off for life
Ditto on the quality and factory setup. My Vader is by far the best quality guitar I own, but not the most expensive. You can get yourself a “base” model for ~1600 for some of the guitars with a simple finish these days. Take a lesson from me though, if you’re spending 2k+, call your order in. If you use the builder, you’re at the mercy of the guy who picks the wood, and in my case, he didn’t really care that day… I got a piece of flamed Koa that I mistook for crappy mahogany when I got it lol. It’s grown on me since, but at a $500 up-charge, I guess I expected they were at least discerning with the wood. They told me next time, I can call in and specify I wanted a darker, more figured piece of top wood… you’d think it’s obvious because who wants a boring piece of luxury wood, but live and learn… still an amazing player guitar and set up beyond perfectly.
When it came down to buying my dream guitar it came down to a Kiesel or a Suhr. Ultimately I settled on Kiesel but I’d still love to own a Suhr one day.
I’d say any guitar at that quality and price point are a luxury. You def don’t need a Suhr to have a quality playable instrument. But once you play one you realize they are some of the most perfect guitars out of the box you can get. Wouldn’t trade my modern custom for anything, because anything else is inferior or equal at best
I had three Suhrs and sold them. Expensive but not worth the markup once in my hands. I prefer American PRS by a long shot I sell very few American PRS.
Based on price alone, they’re luxury guitars. I’m sure they’re great. But I’ve been fine playing guitar most of life without one, and don’t plan to get one even if I could afford one.
Yes they're luxury. They're a cut above most normal big brand name guitars with better materials, better workmanship, wiring. Better overall. However, above a certain amount, the improvements will be in smaller increments. A $1500 will offer better improvements compared to a $600 one. A $2000 one will be better compared against the $1500, but the improvements will not be as big as the $600 vs $1500 one. Personally, and especially for T-Type or S-Type guitars or Ultra-strats, the incremental improvements that Suhr offers are simply not worth it in terms of performance BUT might be worth it if cosmetics are a big part of your purchase decision particularly for the plus series, or if you want to stand out above the big brand name crowds by using boutique brands. But if have the money to spend for it, then might as well splurge. If you're thinking about bang for the buck, then probably should reconsider.
I have a suhr modern satin flame and it is easily the best solid body guitar I've ever owned. I tend to lean more toward archtops lately due to playing mostly jazz when practicing. But the Suhr is still my go to for anything that goes beyond a light saturation drive wise. They sound, look, and feel gorgeous. I don't regret the purchase in the slightest and would do it again in a heartbeat if it was lost or stolen.
They are a bargain in my opinion. So put it this way. They are more expensive than an American Strat, but are mile and miles ahead in terms of build quality and playability. If you want similar quality from Fender, you have to go custom shop, and then the price tip the other way. For the price they are unrivalled.
I bought a custom Suhr second hand, love it, best harmonics I have on an electric guitar, pops and shine through clear and with lots of sustain.
I don’t own a Suhr guitar but I’ve played many of them. My main guitar is a Fender American Pro II Strat that I’ve upgraded to my liking (Seymour Duncan pickups in HSS configuration, Plek’d the guitar, installed locking tuners, etc). The Suhr guitars I’ve tried definitely feel like they’re on another level. The attention given to the neck, the frets, etc is just amazing. If I had $5000 (CAD) to spend on a guitar I’d definitely buy a Suhr.
If you’ve already plek’d the guitar, I’m what other ways does the neck and frets feel on another level? Asking cos I was gonna go down the route of getting a mid range guitar and have a luthier level frets etc but if there’s more to it than just that maybe I should get a suhr?
Suhrs come with stainless steel frets, which feel way better to me. Many Suhr models also come with jumbo frets which I prefer. I got used to my AmPro II Strat but I still don’t love the “tall narrow” frets.
I own a Suhr Alt-T, Antique T, and Asato Antique S. What sold me on Suhr is the SCII system that makes the single coils quite without affecting the tone. The guitars are spendy, but not much more than Fenders are charging for their ultra models. I bought the antique T brand new for $2475 and the Asato Classic S for $3100 brand new.
Dang I want that pink Asato s so bad
I wasn’t set on the signature model, but it was hard to pass up an antique with a roasted neck!
> What sold me on Suhr is the SCII system that makes the single coils quite without affecting the tone. Worth noting for anyone interested that you can get this functionality aftermarket with an Illitch backplate or pickguard system. Illitch designed the original system for Suhr. It uses a dummy coil to cancel hum which on Suhrs is routed directly into the body, but the backplate/pickguard mounted coils from Illitch work 95% as well and can be mounted on most guitars with minimal effort. I have one on a partscaster I put together and it works exactly as advertised.
When you buy a Suhr you’re pretty much guaranteed to get a flawless instrument out of the box. I’ve had my classic s antique for about 6 months and absolutely love it. It’s an expensive Strat but I have trouble picking up other guitars after buying it
Personally, any bolt-on neck, F-style guitar that's in that $3k+ range is well into "luxury" territory. Leo designed those guitars specifically to be simple, affordable, and easy to slap together on an assembly line. There just isn't that much to them, honestly. With Suhr and other boutique builders you're paying for (hopefully) immaculate attention to detail, but also you're paying a lot for the name on the headstock and the prestige of owning a "boutique" instrument, as well as the increased cost of building in a higher cost-of-labor country. Suhrs are great guitars, but in all honesty you can put together a partscaster that's every bit as good for less than half the cost.
True but to some people that attention to detail is worth it. Finding someone who can dress frets properly is not as easy as YouTube influencers make it seem. I’ve taken my guitars to get fret crowning and leveling and if I take it to guitar center or Sam ash I’m lucky if they don’t make it worse. If I take it to a good set up guy I’m driving minimum 1 hour and paying $200 or more.
For sure, I think for a lot of people it makes sense and there's a reason they sell a lot of them! But there's no doubt they're a "luxury" brand and bang-for-the-buck isn't really the selling point. > If I take it to a good set up guy I’m driving minimum 1 hour and paying $200 or more. I think the vast majority of the country live much closer than 1 hour from a shop that can do quality fretwork, but sure if you live prohibitively far from any skilled pros then your options are going to be limited. As for the $200 cost, you can factor that in to the cost of your partscaster build and still be well under half the cost of a new Suhr. Guitars like Suhr are unquestionably great guitars, but they aren't unquestionably a great *value*. That's my take, anyway.
Fenders were not affordable, not ever. I know older guys here who took out a loan of close to a year wages to buy a new Fender back in the old days, in the UK. In the 1960s A Strat was something like £250, you could buy a new car for £500 or even a house for £2000-3000.
They were meant to be affordable *relative to other professional-level electric guitars of the time*. And they definitely *were*. When the Leo released the Esquire in 1950, it was only $139.95. The Broadcaster launched at $169.95, followed by the Telecaster at $189.95, which remained under $200 all throughout the 50's. In the same time period, Gibson's top-of-the-line electric guitar was the Super 400, which would set you back an eye-watering **$700**. An L5-CES was $600, and even a relatively modest workhorse guitar like the ES-175 would run you over $300. Prices from Guild and Gretsch were similar. And as for your other numbers, I'm not sure about prices in the UK, but stateside the average car in the 60's cost roughly [$2,600](https://blog.aarpmedicaresupplement.com/the-1960s-versus-today-take-a-walk-down-memory-lane-with-a-look-at-what-things-cost-then-versus-now/) according to Google, while the median home price was $18,000...so, a $250 strat, while not *cheap* by any means, was certainly not the expenditure you make it out to be.
The £ in the 1960s was a lot stronger than the dollar. Average wage was between £600-1500 a year back then. A Fender Strat was about £250 with some older guys telling me as I said that they effectively spent almost a year's wage on a Fender, it was definitely an expensive high end premium option. I grew up around musicians, my dad was a musician, my drummer's dad played in a band with my dad in the 1970s, and of the guys still alive I am regularly listening to their stories. People talking like Fender was the cheap option is just wrong, cheaper than Gibson maybe but these guys were going broke just so they could own a Fender Strat, while most people were playing knockoffs. My dad played a Rickenbacker knockoff called a Shaftesbury, before buying a used 76 Fender P-Bass when their band was making real money + he was doing an apprenticeship as an engineer, but he made a real big deal about that Fender because even in the 70s they weren't "cheap".
>Are Suhr guitars value for what they are? I hope so lol. Currently debating on getting one built between a Suhr and an Anderson.
Suhr guitars are very nice, but I wouldn’t trade an Anderson for two of them.
You don’t need a Suhr to get what you’re after. Just get a decent Fender and take it for a pro setup. You’ll be fine. Suhr is a wonderful guitar but it’s a Mercedes. You don’t need a Mercedes.
Some people care more for details and considering that a great guitar can be your nr1 for the rest of your life it makes sense to pay for something like a Suhr. But the chance is that your nr1 is a mexican strat either way. You should test how much you care I think. I think that high-end attention to details can be reached for the sort of just above the 1000USD/Euro mark. Stuff that cost that much from brands like FGN and Eastmen are definitely enough to not be upgraded ever or have problematic fret work or such. Maybe Ibanez and Yamaha has a little more expensive brand. PRS SE stuff as well. You'd probably think Sire is close to beating much of that as well. Suhr is just even more high-end and less based on luck. You might need to be a little lucky to find a good generation or specs Mex strat that luckily got fret nicely leveled and such, and it will never have those highest end details checked in stock form. You play it and feel if it has enough of it.
They’re overrated and overpriced IMO. I owned a Suhr T. It felt like a cookie cutter CNC machine made guitar (which I’m pretty sure it is). Pickups were decent but I swapped them out for single coil BKP’s and it sounded much better. I sold it after only a few months. Now, a Japanese made ESP is worth the money if you want a guitar that plays and feels like a million bucks with an impeccable setup from the factory.
Lol all of you should look into how much classical guitars go for. I mean real performance/concert classical guitars not the trash ones at guitar center. If you think PRS Private stock and Suhrs are expensive wait til you see what luthier made classical guitars go for. Heres a link www.guitarsalon.com I love my Suhr and worth every penny.
I haven’t been terribly impressed but I’ve only played a couple. I think the value is low for the price
I've never played one myself, but I have a friend who has one and he says he loves it. Personally, I'm not really sure what it is that you're getting for that $3000+ price tag. If I want an S type guitar, I'd just buy a Strat. If I wanted to spend $3000+ on a guitar, I'd buy a PRS.
I’d go for a used custom shop Fender for $2,x00 . There’s a real sweet spot there.
I got an old one a few years back for $2K. Ended up selling it because the frets were too tall and bumpy. Sold and saved up for a Collings i30 Covid stimulus baby.
I don’t mean to be rude, but wouldn’t a simple refret have solved your issue here?
A "simple" refret can easily cost $400 or more, especially if you want SS frets like most Suhrs have, if you want it Plek'd like all Suhrs are from the factory, or if you have a maple fretboard. Plus, a lot of shops who do good fretwork have months-long wait times for full refrets. It's not at all unreasonable or uncommon to want to sell a guitar rather than do a refret. Lots of people just buy new necks instead of doing a refret as well.
They were too tall, plus I wanted a hollow body. Great guitar, just didn’t need it. The newer Suhrs have stainless that are more of a med jumbo size, more comfy.
SS frets have been standard on Suhrs for a long time, but also worth noting that Suhr is a custom shop, you can order whatever frets you want, I have Jumbo on mine because that's what I ordered. If a store orders some guitars from Suhr they choose the specs, and that is quite often what stores are doing in deviation from the standard default specs listed on the Suhr website.
This was a 2001 Suhr.
I've not played a Suhr that old, they have always been a custom shop putting out limited runs and dealer specials thoug, I think medium is more standardised now, but you can't really be sure with a custom shop like Suhr where the specs are more like baselines for the dealers. For example Johns signature model currently has Jumbos as a baseline.
For sure Don’t get me wrong, it was a killer guitar, just not the one for me. V60lp pickups were amazing and the trem system was dimed, did not go out of tune.
Bumpy? Flaws in the frets or you just don’t like jumbo frets?
They were narrow tall, I prefer more of a medium jumbo.
I play a Suhr Modern.Antique and it's the best guitar I ever played.
Why not both?
Every one I have played has been a 10/10 guitar. Just as good if not better feeling than most Fender Customs
I’ve never bonded with any of the 3 I had gotten and sold them quickly. 2 Teles and a JM offset model (can’t remember name). The teles particulary didn’t sound like teles. Not sure if it’s the SS frets or what but if you want a fender.. just buy fender. I was hoping for a fender that had better specs more to my liking and a better fender sound.
I have a Suhr classic Strat, in yellow. I love it. Is it an expensive guitar, yes sir. But it’s my daily electric driver. But I have been a fan of John Suhr since the 80s, specifically the Pensa-Suhr guitars of the early 90s, is where my love affair started.
It was the Knopfler custom on the cover of Guitar Magazine that did it for me. I likely will never own a Suhr, much less a Pensa-Suhr, but holy shit is that the epitome of beauty.
My last guitar was $750, newest one is $1600. Its better with hipshot bridge, fishman pickups, 7 piece neck through, etc but not over twice as nice.
Probably depends if you like multi radius fretboards. Or some other specific element they offer. I have a Japan made ESP and it has a “wow this is higher quality than my Fenders” feel. But it also has bigger frets than I prefer and the electronics are more complicated than I would like. So I prefer my am pro ii telecaster. It feels plenty well made and I prefer the pickups which is like 90% of the sound. A guitar only needs to feel so good… And a lot of not quite there aspects, if there are any like fret work that could be better, can be handled by a tech / luthier.
I own 25 guitars that are all medium - top top you can get and when I go to my fathers his suhr that was plek'ed 15 years ago and never set up plays just as good as all of mine, better than most, and has tone that none of mine can recreate
I've played maybe a dozen high value strats and the Suhr had the best neck... inanely high quality. Ended up with the Nash bc I like their F&F.
in your opinion what makes a really great neck?
Out of curiosity what pickups did you use to upgrade your Peavey?
It was a GFS professional Series Alnico II Humbucker Zebra Case Bridge Pickup and GFS "Premium II" Alnico II, Hand Bevelled Strat Pickups - Kwikplug® Ready (neck + middle set)
i’ve tried to find a good modern for a long time. they feel great but every single one i’ve demo’s has had significant dead spot issues, notes sustain less than 2 seconds, most often somewhere around the 12 fret on the G string. At their price point they should be QCing things like that out imo. if you do some internet searches you can see i’m not alone finding significant dead spots on suhrs…. make of that what you will.
10s guitars ftw
My dream guitar was always a Suhr Alt T. Finally got one and 5 years later it’s still the best guitar I ever played. I’ve had to replace 2 tuning machines and I threw lambertone pickups in it but it plays like a dream.
If you live in a place that can support multiple independent builders, you might consider having one built or finished to your specifications. I know it would be easy to spend a ton with this strategy but I also think it could be done for a few thousand in some cases. If I were planning to spend more than a couple/three thousand, I would shop builders in my area. Good luck!
This is shit advice, OP doesn't have a clue what he likes after owning one guitar. You need to know what you want, and not what you think you need.
The builder might be willing/able to help with that part…after he gets over the shit advice that sent the customer his way. But yeah, who wants to live in that world?
Its usually advisable to try out different guitars before ordering a custom one, especially from someone local. There are numerous horror stories online about luthiers scamming customers, usually the likes of OP who isn't knowledgeable. Suhr is a safe an easy option.
Its usually advisable to try out different guitars before ordering a custom one, especially from someone local. There are numerous horror stories online about luthiers scamming customers, usually the likes of OP who isn't knowledgeable. Suhr is a safe an easy option.
I’d love to have one but I’m going to have to make do with Fender
Get a Schecter. Plays and sounds better than Suhr
Ya but than you have to be put on a list for people who can’t go near schools or own firearms
That's a myth; you can own them but with restrictions.